The invention relates to wheelbarrows. More particularly, the invention relates to wheelbarrow use in snow.
A typical wheelbarrow 20 has a tray or bucket 22 supported by a front wheel 24 (typically a single central front wheel). In an exemplary configuration, the wheelbarrow has a pair of rear legs 26A, 26B for supporting it when not in use. To use the wheelbarrow, a pair of handles 28A, 28B project rearwardly and terminate in grips 30A, 30B which may be gripped by a user to lift the legs off engagement with the ground and roll the wheelbarrow using the wheel. A typical configuration has the handles as structural members extending forwardly from the grips under the tray and secured to the tray to support the tray and proceeding forward to journals or brackets 32 mounting opposite ends of an axle 34 supporting the wheel. At their forward ends 36A, 36B, the handles may be joined by a bracket 40 which serves as a wheel guard immediately in front of the wheel. Typical handles are wood, typical trays are metallic (e.g., steel) or plastic, and typical legs and other braces are metallic. A typical wheel is metallic or plastic and has a pneumatic rubber tube-type tire 42.
Various proposals have been made to adapt wheelbarrows for use in snow. One exemplary proposal is seen in U.S. Pat. No. 3,367,674 of Puhl which discloses a ski mountable to the wheel. Additionally, U.S. Pat. No. 5,924,708 of Bisaillon and Bisaillon discloses a two-wheel wheelbarrow in which the wheels may be replaced by skis.